I hadn’t read any books by Jill Sorenson before Set the Dark on Fire, but bought another one before writing this review. That tells you that I was very impressed.

It’s not that there’s anything particularly original in this story. It’s a romantic suspense story about a new sheriff investigating a woman’s death by a mountain lion, but it is clearly more complex than just a wild animal going rogue. The sheriff, Luke Meza, enlists the help of a member of the Department of Fish and Game: Shay Phillips, a confident, independent woman who brought up her brother singlehandedly. Unsurprisingly, sparks fly.

A subplot involving Shay’s brother, Dylan, and his attempts to woo his neighbor Angel--during which he finds himself drawn into what becomes a murder investigation--is less successful, but the central romance between Shay and Luke was really well written and believable.

Set the Dark on Fire touches on issues of relationships between the Anglo, Indian and Mexican communities in Nevada, family tensions, a boy coming of age, and more. Thumbs up for this exciting read!